Thread-holding cabinet



H. S. LUSTER. I THREAD HOLDING CABINET;

No. 495,351. Patented Apr. 11,1893.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY S. LUSTER, OF NORTH RIDGEVILLE, OHIO.

TH READ-HOLDING CABINET.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 495,351, dated April 11, 1893.

Application filed March 28, 1892.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY S. LUsTER, of North Ridgeville, in the county of Lorain and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful lmprovementsin Thread-Holding Cabinets; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to improvements in thread-cabinets; and it consists primarily in a drawer having one or more compartments, in combination with a suitable cut-off whereby, Without necessitating the pulling out of the drawer, a single spool of thread, may be cut off from the spools of thread contained within the drawer or compartment of the drawer.

My invention consists, also, in certain features of construction, and in combination of parts, hereinafter described and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a view in perspective of a portion of a drawer embodying my invention, and Figs. 2 and 3 show a longitudinal central section taken through one of the compartments of the drawer, Figsil and 3 illustrating the opera tion of the cut-0E mechanism. Fig. 4 is a detail. Fig. 5 shows a detail of a modification.

Referring to the drawings, A represents the sides and A the bottom of a drawer, the sides having preferably longitudinal grooves a on v the outer surface that are adapted to engage corresponding tenons or tongues on the side Walls of the cabinet not shown. Without illustrating the drawer in position in a cabinet it is considered sufficient to state that the drawer has preferably an inclined bottom, or

r is located in an inclined plane, as shown, so

that the spools of thread, T, will roll or slide adown the bottom of the drawer by gravity.

The drawer illustrated is divided into four compartments, a, adapted to receive a single ow or file of spools of threadwiththe spools arranged crosswise the compartments, and a represents the partitions between the compartments, partitions a extending to the forward end of the drawer.

The forward end of each compartment of Serial 110.426,?39. (N0 model.)

the drawer comprises a lid, B, hinged at its lower end, and having suitable cut-off mechanism connected therewith, whereby, in opening the lid, a single spool of thread will be cutoff from the row or file of spools within the compartment and discharged onto the open lid.

'A preferable construction is shown in the drawings, wherein the cut-off mechanism and lid of a compartment are made of a single sheet of metal; 0 representing a bar or rod, either of wood or metal, 1to which lids, B, are hinged, in common, rod or bar 0, connecting and being secured to the sides of the drawer in any suitable manner, the sheet of metal comprising lid B being bent around said rod or bar, substantially encircling the latter, as atb; thence bent rearward andslightly curved, as at b, and thence bentdownward, as at b members I) and b constituting the cut-0E. Bottom A of the drawer, of course, does not extend to the forward extremity of the drawer but terminates rearward of the aforesaid cutofi to accommodate the location and operation of the latter.

Lid B is provided with a knob, button, or handle, D, located preferably, as shown, at the right-hand upper corner of the lid so that the person opening the lid with the forefinger and thumb, as would be natural, can-catch and receive the spool of thread in the palm of the same hand. There is also provided a spring acting in the direction to retain the lid in its closed position. rangement consists of a leaf spring, E, secured to the bottom of the drawer, as at e, and thence extending forward and around the hinged end of lid B with the free end or forward extremity e of the spring bearing against the lid. With such construction, member b 'of the cut-off would of course be slotted or cut-away, as at b to accommodate the location of the spring.

A cross-bar, as at G, extends from side to side at the top of the forward end of the drawer, and the upper end of lids, B, of the compartments of the drawer, bear against said cross-bar.

The lid of a compartment, or knob or handle of the lid, or the cabinet in suitable proximity to the lid, would likely bear distinguish- A preferable ar-- ing marks, colors, numbers, or characters, to indicate the color and quality of the thread contained within the respective compartment.

I prefer the employment of the peculiar spring G shown for the reason that it is cheap, simple and durable, but to satisfy a person whom the appearance of the spring from the front view of the drawer, might not please, I take a sheet of metal sufficiently longer than is required for lid B and the cut-off, so that the sheet may be folded at the upper end of the lid, as at B and caused to cover and conceal the forward portion of the spring, as at B (See Figs. 2 and 3.)

The operation of the device, it is believed, will be readily understood, and briefly stated, it is as follows:The person in charge opens the lid of the compartment from which it is desired to take a spool of thread. The spool of thread that was lodged upon member I) of the cutoff (see Fig. 2), will be released or cutoff and caused to roll onto the open lid (see Figs. 1 and 3) and thence into the palm of the hand holding the lid, member 19 of the cut-off limiting the advance or forward movement of the remaining spools in the compartment. The lid of the compartment having been released, the same is closed by the action of spring, E, whereupon the foremost of the remaining spools within the compartment will be lodged upon member I) of the cut-off and ready to be next discharged, the row or file of spools within the compartment, of course, advancing a distance equal to the diameter of a spool. WVith a drawer declining as shown, some suitable catch or means should, of course, be provided for-holding the drawer from sliding out of the cabinet, but as there are a variety of well-known catches and devices in the market Well adapted for the purpose, it is not considered necessary to describe or illustrate the same.

A slight modification, or rather addition, in the construction of lid B, is shown in Fig. 5, wherein the lid .is bent outward as at B that is, depressed on its inner surface, whereby the spool of thread, as it is cut off from the respective compartment of the drawer, instead of rolling into the hand holding the lid, will be arrested by said depression in-the lid, for thus exhibiting the thread that may be removed with the other hand, if desired.

The practical utility of my invention, it is believed, will be readily apparent to any one, especially to those who have more frequent occasion to buy and sell thread.

What I claim is 1. A drawer for thread holding cabinets com prising bottom and sides, said'drawer having partitions therein whereby to divide the drawer into compartments, a cross bar extending across the drawer at the front upper edge, and a lid for each compartment hinged at the lower forward end and adapted to bear on the cross bar when closed, substantially as set forth.

2. A drawer for thread holding cabinets comprising bottom, sides cross-bar,'and partitions, hinged lids for each compartment each lid having a cut-off whereby to prevent the removal of more than one spool at a time, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I sign this specification, in the presence of two witnesses, this 3d day of February, 1892.

HENRY S. LUSTER.

WVitnesses:

O. H. DORER, WARD HOOVER. 

